Chapter 18: The Dwelling of Evil (1)

The Demonic Monk bowed respectfully, filled with fear and awe. Seeing this unexpected behavior from the ghost-like entity, Mok Gyeong-un looked curiously at the book inside the wooden box.

A strange book made of human skin.

Why was Demonic Monk reacting this way to this book surrounded by prayer beads?

Unconsciously, Mok Gyeong-un reached out to touch the book in the box.

And the moment his fingertips made contact—

Thump!

"!?"

Mok Gyeong-un's eyes narrowed.

'...A pulse?'

For a split second, he felt a pulse.

It was as clear as a beating heart.

Yet paradoxically, this pulsing wasn't a sign of life.

It was closer to death.

Thump! Thump!

The pulsing seemed to grow stronger.

'....'

After staring intently at the book, Mok Gyeong-un closed the box lid.

A powerful attraction had formed.

He wanted to remove the prayer beads and see what was inside, but it seemed difficult right now.

The reason Demonic Monk appeared was because someone had infiltrated the Medicine Hall.

'An intruder.'

Mok Gyeong-un licked his upper lip regretfully.

Then he turned his gaze upward.

Tap! Tap!

A black-masked figure was moving across the roof tiles.

The masked person noticed Go-chan, the guard watching over the only path to Medicine Hall, and became even more cautious.

'Hmm.'

Something caught the masked person's eye.

Mok Gyeong-un had two guards.

Since one of them was no longer considered Mok Gyeong-un's man, it wasn't an exaggeration to say he now had only one guard left.

'But why isn't he by his side?'

Normally, a guard would stay right beside the person they're protecting.

Yet he was guarding the path away from the Hall?

'It's one of two things.'

First, his master might be sensitive and not allow him to stay close.

But this didn't seem right.

It made no sense for a guard to watch from afar when his master had a pierced thigh.

Then it must be the second option.

Which was...

'Is he keeping watch?'

He was monitoring the surroundings on his master's orders, watching for anyone approaching.

There was no other reason to be so far away.

The masked person stroked his chin.

'Keeping watch in the early hours before dawn without sleeping...'

This was turning out to be more interesting than expected.

His name was Jo Il-sang.

He was one of the three guards of the second young master, Mok Eun-pyeong.

[Just in case, I should check. Whether it's a desperate measure or not.]

He had received one order from Mok Eun-pyeong.

To verify whether Mok Gyeong-un had really lost his martial arts or not.

If he hadn't lost them, it would mean Guard Gam's plea to accept him was a lie, and if he really couldn't use martial arts, the plea would be true.

[Should I just check?]

[That wouldn't be fun. If he really has lost his martial arts, give him a good scare. Tell him not to act up.]

[Hehehe. Understood.]

And so, he came as one of the three guards.

Jo Il-sang's martial arts level could be described as between a second-rate warrior and a first-rate expert.

He was a step above Go-chan, which is why he was chosen for this task.

Swoosh! Tap!

Jo Il-sang moved in a different direction to avoid Go-chan's line of sight and jumped over the wall.

After crossing the wall, Jo Il-sang climbed onto the roof of the Hall and slipped through a gap between the tiles.

'I wonder what he's doing that made him set up a watch despite supposedly being injured?'

Was it because his injury was fake?

Or was the information about losing his martial arts false?

Whatever the reason, there must be something to hide.

'Let's see what he's hiding.'

And so, Jo Il-sang infiltrated the Medicine Hall through the gap in the roof tiles.

Suppressing even his breathing, he quietly hung from the ceiling and observed below. One of his eyebrows raised.

'What's this?'

He saw a scene different from what he expected.

In Jo Il-sang's disappointed eyes, he saw Mok Gyeong-un sitting up on his bed, reading a book by the light of a single lamp.

'He's just reading a book?'

Jo Il-sang suspiciously scanned the surroundings.

But there was no one else in there besides Mok Gyeong-un.

'Strange.'

He hadn't come through the door, and Go-chan, his only guard, was keeping watch outside, so he couldn't have noticed.

Could someone have alerted him? That didn't seem to be the case either.

Then...

'Could there be a secret in that book?'

That possibility couldn't be ruled out.

He needed to make contact anyway to check if Mok Gyeong-un had martial arts or not.

Jo Il-sang carefully suppressed his presence and moved across the ceiling towards the bed where Mok Gyeong-un was.

And then—

Thud!

He jumped down.

Simultaneously, Jo Il-sang snatched the book Mok Gyeong-un was reading with lightning speed.

Pat!

Having grabbed the book, Jo Il-sang naturally expected Mok Gyeong-un to be startled or retaliate.

But contrary to expectations, Mok Gyeong-un neither retaliated nor showed any sign of surprise.

Instead, he was looking at Jo Il-sang as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

"Who—"

Swoosh!

As Mok Gyeong-un was about to say something, Jo Il-sang pointed a dagger at his throat and whispered,

"If you don't want to die, keep quiet."

"..."

Mok Gyeong-un closed his mouth.

Things seemed to be going well, but Jo Il-sang didn't feel that way.

'This guy...'

Suddenly, a masked person appears, snatches his book, and threatens him with a dagger to his throat.

Normally, anyone would be bewildered.

No, they should show fear or tension.

But Mok Gyeong-un was looking at him with an expressionless face, showing no change in emotion, as if this was an everyday occurrence.

'Judging by this guy's reaction...'

He looked like someone who knew in advance that Jo Il-sang would come.

But that was impossible.

To show such a calm demeanor, one would need to possess extraordinary martial arts skills to protect their own life.

'!?'

Jo Il-sang's eyes narrowed.

Come to think of it, regardless of whether he had martial arts or not, people's bodies tend to move reflexively in some way when startled.

But Mok Gyeong-un didn't move at all.

'Could the information about this guy losing his martial arts be false?'

Glance!

Jo Il-sang turned his eyes to look at the book he had snatched.

But when he saw the title of the book, his eyes shook wildly.

'!!!!!!'

It was

[The Yeonmok Sacred Sword Technique]

There was no way anyone from the Yeonmok Sword Clan wouldn't know the name of this sword technique.

This was the sword technique that symbolized the Yeonmok Sword Clan.

The reason was that this sword technique contained the supreme mysteries that only the leader of the Yeonmok Sword Clan could learn.

'Ha...'

The surprised Jo Il-sang's next action was something even he hadn't planned.

Jo Il-sang grabbed Mok Gyeong-un's shoulder with the Geum Na-su technique and pulled him down.

At the same time, he struck the acupoint on the back of Mok Gyeong-un's head with the hand holding the dagger.

Thud!

Struck in this way, Mok Gyeong-un's head drooped down.

Jo Il-sang's heart was pounding, and he exhaled his rough breathing.

"Haa...."

For a moment, surprised by the secret manual of the Yeonmok Sacred Sword Technique, he had knocked Mok Gyeong-un unconscious by hitting the acupoint on the back of his head.

'Was this the reason he set up a watch?'

Jo Il-sang placed his hand on the acupoint of the unconscious Mok Gyeong-un.

He had almost forgotten, but he also needed to check whether Mok Gyeong-un had lost his martial arts or not.

Swoosh!

Placing his hand on the acupoint, Jo Il-sang sent a stream of inner energy into Mok Gyeong-un's body.

'Ah!'

There was no need for a long check.

If there was even a little inner energy, it would cause a rebound or some kind of rejection reaction as soon as someone else's energy entered.

But Mok Gyeong-un showed none of that.

Poke poke!

Jo Il-sang pressed on Mok Gyeong-un's lower abdomen near the dantian.

'It's not there.'

There really was no dantian.

The corners of Jo Il-sang's mouth turned up.

After examining whether Mok Gyeong-un had martial arts or not, the second young master Mok Eun-pyeong's instruction to scare him had already disappeared from his mind.

Jo Il-sang opened the pages of the secret manual..

"Kup!"

After flipping through a few pages, Jo Il-sang's lips twitched.

He almost laughed without realizing it.

He had wondered if it might be fake, but these were undoubtedly the real sword techniques of the Yeonmok Sacred Sword Technique.

From the very beginning, the sword forms were extraordinary.

'Calm down.'

He never dreamed that this would be in Mok Gyeong-un's possession.

The clan leader was already so ill that he could die any day, and the clan members were very worried about the situation where both the clan leader's seal and the secret manual of The Yeonmok Sacred Sword Technique, which was crucial for succession, were missing.

And now this manual had fallen into his hands.

'This is it.'

Getting it was truly fortunate.

If his lord, Mok Eun-pyeong, could learn this sword technique exclusive to the clan leader, even if the current leader died like this, the position of the next leader would belong to his lord.

'We have the upper hand.'

No matter how much the current leader favored the youngest, Mok Yu-cheon, even if there was the eldest son Mok Yeong-ho, as long as they were a martial arts clan, the clan members would ultimately have to support his lord.

Just as he was rejoicing, it happened.

Shudder!

Suddenly, a strong chill ran through his entire body, making his skin crawl.

Along with this, something pressed down on his shoulder.

'What is this?'

Startled, Jo Il-sang hurriedly tried to summon his inner energy.

Right at that moment.

Thud!

"Hup!"

Someone punched him in the lower abdomen near his dantian.

It was Mok Gyeong-un, whom he believed he had knocked unconscious.

'What... what strength?'

This is the strength of someone without inner energy?

It was at least second-rate level.

Tremble!

Jo Il-sang's body stiffened for just a moment, as he was caught off guard and couldn't summon his inner energy before his dantian was struck.

But that brief moment worked very badly for him.

"Kuk!"

Thud! Thud!

His blood vessels stood out.

A bizarre sensation crept in through his pressed shoulder.

This sensation made him writhe in pain and agony.

Jo Il-sang gritted his teeth and tried to push away this strange sensation with his inner energy.

However—

Thud!

Not missing that moment, Mok Gyeong-un swung his fist at Jo Il-sang's chin while simultaneously punching his abdomen repeatedly.

Thud thud thud thud!

Normally, such tactics wouldn't work on Jo Il-sang, who was approaching first-rate level.

But the momentary carelessness from obtaining the secret manual,

And the sensation causing chills throughout his body while pressing down on his shoulder, along with the persistent punches targeting only the area near his dantian—even he couldn't withstand it.

"Kuuuh! You... you bastard..."

"You're quite tough. Well then..."

Pak!

Mok Gyeong-un grabbed the back of his head with both hands and pulled it down, kneeing him in the face.

Crunch!

"Kuup!"

There was a sound of his nose and teeth breaking.

Nevertheless, Mok Gyeong-un continued to punch his face as he staggered backward.

Thud! Thud!

Even though blood was soaking his fists, Mok Gyeong-un didn't stop.

'Vi... vicious...'

And so, Jo Il-sang quickly lost consciousness.

How long had it been?

Jo Il-sang, regaining consciousness, struggled to open his eyes.

As he opened them, he felt like his head was about to explode.

'What... happened?'

Having just woken up, he couldn't quite remember what had occurred.

Then it came back to him.

Mok Gyeong-un, with an expressionless face, frantically beating his face.

'Damn it...'

He had completely let his guard down.

Or was it even right to call it letting his guard down?

The first blow came from his carelessness after confirming that the guy had no dantian, but after that...

'What was that sensation?'

He couldn't forget that chilling sensation that made his spine tingle.

Because of that sensation, his body had stiffened, and when he tried to endure it with his inner energy, Mok Gyeong-un had repeatedly struck his dantian and vital points, causing him to lose consciousness.

In fact, it wouldn't have been strange if he had died.

'...What exactly is going on?'

Jo Il-sang was perplexed.

He had clearly confirmed that Mok Gyeong-un had no inner energy.

Yet that level of impact was almost equal to his own strength.

'Damn it.'

"Haa... haa..."

But for now, that wasn't the most important thing.

Jo Il-sang struggled to open his eyes, which were barely opening due to the dried blood, and looked around.

'!?'

As he surveyed his surroundings, he furrowed his brow.

This wasn't The Medicine Hall.

Come to think of it, he had been feeling strangely cool and damp for a while now—it seemed like some kind of cave.

Drip! Drip!

'Huh?'

Jo Il-sang noticed drops of what might be sweat or blood from his body rising into the air.

He wondered what kind of phenomenon this was, and then realized—

'Don't tell me... I'm hanging upside down right now?'

Now he understood why his face felt like it was about to burst.

He had thought it was because his face had been beaten so badly, but it was actually because he was hanging upside down and the blood was rushing to his head.

"Haa... haa..."

Jo Il-sang's breathing became rough.

He didn't know where this place was, but something felt ominous.

It seemed he needed to escape quickly.

"Whew."

He focused his breathing and tried to draw out the energy from his dantian.

But—

'What... what's going on?'

He couldn't muster any strength in his entire body.

He wanted to concentrate, but he couldn't feel any sensation in any part of his body except his face.

"Why... why is this happening?"

In his panic, words spilled from his mouth.

Swoosh!

Just then, he sensed someone's presence.

"Looks like you're awake."

Looking towards the source of the sound, he saw Mok Gyeong-un walking upside down on the ceiling.

Of course, this was due to his inverted vision from being hung upside down.

Panicked by the numbness throughout his body, Jo Il-sang shouted,

"You... you! What exactly did you do?"

In response to his question, the corners of Mok Gyeong-un's mouth stretched up to his ears.

"I wonder. What did I do?"

Shiver!

Despite the smile, the sinister malice in his eyes was the embodiment of evil itself.